Since the advent of the firearm, mankind has expended great effort in making firearms lighter and easier to use. The difficulty in this effort is that, by nature, a firearm must contain a controlled explosion of a propellant charge, such as gunpowder, to launch a projectile with usually lethal force. Even at this time, only metals can be readily relied upon to contain these repeated explosions. As such, firearm barrels are most often made of metals.
One method of making barrels lighter, especially as developments in both metallurgy and propellants advances, is to make a steel barrel liner and then wrap it in some form of composite outer layer, usually fiberglass or reinforced polymer. Prior to embodiments of the disclosed invention the steel barrel liners were wrapped with composite fibers in divided segments. Divided segments permit a location in which to create a gas port for the extraction of hot, high-pressure gas from the fired cartridge to power the mechanism of ejection and reloading of the system. High-temperature gasses can degrade the composite structure if not ported completely through the steel. Unfortunately, by using divided segments, at least one hinge point is created which adversely affects the barrel weight, strength, and accuracy of the firearm. Embodiments of the disclosed invention solve this problem.